This stuffed tiger was gifted by an Indonesian provincial government to the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) in appreciation of the Navy’s contributions to the 2008 iteration of Surya Bhaskara Jaya (SBJ), a humanitarian assistance programme conducted by the Indonesian Navy throughout the Indonesian archipelago. At the invitation of the Indonesian Navy, the RSN has participated in SBJ since 1997. The programme sees the RSN and the Indonesian Navy work together to provide healthcare, educational, and social services, such as performing surgeries and dental checks, carrying out repairs, and distributing essential food items in underdeveloped Indonesian provinces.
While military forces are traditionally associated with force and deterrence, the various branches of the Singapore Armed Forces, such as the RSN, help to contribute to the country’s defence diplomacy. Other than SBJ, the RSN’s defence diplomacy efforts include port visits, naval information exchanges, and cooperative exercises with regional and international partners to tackle common maritime security problems in order to reduce tension and build confidence and trust between the RSN and its partners.
Gift exchanges between militaries are a common occurrence. Such forms of diplomacy show respect and cultivate relationships between all parties. However, this stuffed tiger is unique among the diplomatic gifts due to its size, special appearance, and meaning. Gifts are typically carefully chosen to honour the recipient and reflect a nation’s essence, people, and culture. This is certainly the case with this gift, as the tiger is an animal that holds significant connotations for both Singapore and Indonesia. Representing strength and courage, the tiger is featured on Singapore’s national coat of arms, or state crest. Tigers also feature prominently in the traditions, cultures, and histories of both commoners and elites on the island of Java. While the villagers deemed tigers as protective ancestral spirits, the elites believed its traits to be wild but necessary to a Javanese ruler in the defence of his kingdom.
Although this stuffed tiger was a unique gift, it presented some challenges for the RSN due to Singapore’s domestic law, which regulates the trade of any endangered animal and plant specimens, parts, or products. A permit was also required for its import, and when it was eventually granted, the stuffed tiger became part of the RSN’s collection of diplomatic gifts.